"WE THE PEOPLE"
GENRE- Talk show
HOST- Barkha Dutt
CHANNEL- NDTV 24x7
AIRS- Sunday night, 8 pm-9pm
I am one of those people who rarely watches the news (although I do religiously read newspapers every morning!). Thus, the joys of watching CNN, BBC, even DD (!!!) usually elude me. One fine day, while flicking channels to latch onto some hitherto unwatched movie, I happened upon this talk show with some very excitable audience members, a very articulate, in control host, and some very controversial panelists....that show was "We the people". Since that momentous day, some 3 months back, I can actually add some intelligent tv watching to my usual escapist fare!
"WE, the people" is a completely addictive television programme, which, try as you might, you cant quit watching. Its a show that brings national headlines into the drawing room of the common man, to be discussed and debated. If you see a particular topic hitting the headlines frequently in a week, you can be sure it is going to be debated by Barkha Dutt and her panelists come Sunday!
Since the time I’ve been watching, the show has discussed a variety of topics from the form of the Indian cricket team, to the inclusion of VandeMataram in school curriculums, to the depiction of modern day Indian marriages in movies (KANK), to the decrimiinalisation of homosexuality, to (most recently) the relevance of women wearing a veil in this day and age.
What I like most about the programme-
BARKHA DUTT- This lady is famous for all the right reasons! As the host of this show, she is articulate, fairly non-partisan (well, most of the times!), and has a talent for drawing out the most introverted of panelists. What I like best about her is how quick she is on the uptake, comprehending even the most inarticulate, jumbled up statements, and reframing them so everyone can understand. In addition, perhaps due to the respect she commands, she is great at shutting up some of the boorish, verbose, full of themselves panelists, fairly tactfully!
GOOD FORUM, SUBJECT MATTER-for the most part- Newspapers and news programmes can get very frustrating because the communication of information is very one-sided. They give you information which you are supposed to digest and hold within, but what you really want to do is challenge that information and debate it. That’s what, "We the People" allows you to do, Even though you arent debating it personally, you see a number of peope voicing opinions that are very similar to yours...very satisfying!
What can be improved-
MORE AUDIENCE PARTICIPATION- I find sometimes that audience members are ignored almost entirely through a programme, in favour of Barkha Dutt! I agree that the lady makes the most sense, but sometimes you want to hear varied opinions, even if they sound irrational!
SOME PANELISTS " MOLLYCODDLED"- Sometimes Barkha Dutt bends over backwards for some guests...especially film stars like Sharukh. Granted he’s a huge celebrity and is charismatic, but on a show on marital fidelity/infidelity, in what way is he an authority to be allowed to hog 75% of onscreen time?!!!
All in all, this is a great show. If you are addicted to it as I am, do drop in a word in the comments section and let me know what you think. Even if you havent watched it, do drop in a word and let me know if I’ve tempted you to watch it!